Selwyn Times: June 13, 2017

10 Tuesday

10 Tuesday June132017 Latest Christchurch news at www. .kiwi SELWYN TIMES Your Local Views Cherry and Don Lorking respond to SelwynTimes’ article on the district council setting up a working party to look at the district’s facilities available to cope with freedom campers My wife and I agree working parties, throughout New Zealand, need to consider a charge for the honour of using the facilities we provide for freedom campers at great cost. They say they cannot afford to pay, so they don’t have a holiday in New Zealand. They have paid for air fares, vehicles and food so they need to budget for a payment for the facilities as well. Living near Coes Ford we see the numbers which have now put off families like ours going to enjoy the area. Steve Young responds to SelwynTimes’ article on parking issues at The Famous Sheffield Pie Shop The parking around the pie shop is, as your photograph partly shows, ill-defined, which is the fault of both the property owner and the road controlling authorities. The shop’s off-street parking needs to be better defined, especially out front. The berms you refer to don’t belong to the neighbours; they are part of the road reserve, and as such it’s the district council’s job to maintain them. Although, obviously, most people, including me, mow the grass berms outside our properties. Widen the seal on Duke St (and preferably put in kerbing and footpaths as well), paint parking spaces, signpost the shop’s back car park, and problem solved. Widening the seal on the north side of State Highway 73, with a bit of kerbing to define the road edge as well, would also be a good move. We said: The Famous Sheffield Pie Shop makes a darn good pie – but locals are screaming out for roading changes to make it safer to park outside the shop which sits beside a busy highway: You said: Alison Westrupp – Put in a bus lane. That’s what they do to ease parking issues isn’t it? I’m kidding, I support local business and I hope this issue is able to be sorted. Andrew Johnson – I’d park in Springfield and walk there for one of their pies. Denise Petrie – Parking omg. Seriously have you been to Auckland or Wellington and looked for a safe park. Walking is an option. Andrea Welsh – Oh yum. They have the best pies. Ken Duggan – Move the shop, easy. Andrew Gordon – Good pies. We said: Darfield has been labelled as having the best tasting water in the country by a panel of judges at the New Zealand Water Industry Operators Group conference. Do you agree? You said: Jenny Blacklock – Sounds great. We always take large containers of our water from Motueka when we go travelling as ours is just as superb also. Would love to know how we rated in the water industry tests. We will give you guys a “taste test” next time we are travelling through Darfield. Graeme Brown – Should have kept that quiet. Now they will sell the rights to a bottling plant for next to nothing and then charge Darfield higher rates to cover the costs. Hamish Middleton – Amazing that within 40km it either turns bad or disappears completely. Wendy McDiarmid: Waikuku Beach has the best water. Dean Anthony Robinson: Lake Tekapo’s water clear cool clean just so fresh. We said: Jimmy Barnes is heading to Lincoln. Oh the memories of playing Jimmy on the ol’ tape deck back in the day. . . You said: Mark Restieaux – Oh cool, just what Christchurch could do with after what they have been through over the past five years. Amanda Dixon – Definitely going again next year. Leonie Knight – This would be awesome. Lee Beattie – Awesome lineup. Can’t wait. Gilly Barker – Have to go. Mary McAtamney – I’m booked already. One step closer to your dream lifestyle JUNE 30 - JULY 2 HORNCASTLE ARENA 10AM - 5PM Adults $8 - Under 12’s free Star Media is proud to be sponsoring Canterbury’s first ever Playhouse Challenge Live Auction Saturday July 1 at 4pm Proceeds to charity - Birthright Canterbury and Tenants Protection Association starhomeshow.kiwi Star Media Event

SELWYN TIMES Latest Christchurch news at www. .kiwi Tuesday June132017 11 Things get done in Springfield Springfield Township Committee secretary Sean Ellis writes about developments going on in the area Mention township and most people switch off, thinking of a room full of people talking all night, going around in circles and nothing getting decided, but not in Springfield. We are very aware we are the link between our community and the district council and go to great lengths to keep both parties in the loop. Using the Springfield Facebook page, it has been great for putting out information and asking for suggestions on the direction the township will move. We also have a good working relationship with our domain board and hall committee sharing plan ideas and working together. Having Malvern Community Board deputy chairman Kerry Pauling attend all meetings bridges the gap between township and district council and get answers to questions in a matter of days instead of months. The committee is made up from all walks of life, builders, farmers, teachers, mums, business owners and a shepherd. We meet the first Tuesday of every month. We encourage members of the public to come along if they have an issue or a proposal. We only ask that they get in touch with a member of the committee at least a week before the meeting, this isn’t to put people off, more that we can have the answers ready for you when you turn up. Within the past two years we have worked hard to keep moving forward to make are small town a little better. We have reduced the speed limit of the town from 70km/h to 50km/h and installed a speed limit flashing light. We have built a state-of-the-art set of public toilets and improved the parking area to give access to coaches. We removed six old man pines that were making a family life hell having to live in permanent frosts during the winter months and cleared an area of weedinfested land, stone-picked it sowed it with grass and replanted it with trees and now it’s called the Tramway Reserve. Several oregon pines that were crowding out many of the oak trees in the area have been removed. A 700m walking/cycle track along Tramway Rd was installed recently. We have several ongoing projects. A walkway to link up the township with the domain camping ground. This will run from Rewi Alley memorial, along the top of the old railway embankment across a new culvert and down to run parallel with the State Highway 73 on land donated by the Faulkner family. All going well this should be completed by the end of August, weather permitting. Also in the early stages is a plan to turn the old town pit into a nature trail being planted out with natives. Finally, a bus stop for the kids at far end of the township on a small plot of land owned by Jo Frecker who has agreed to have the bus stop put up there. This isn’t the end of our plans we are just pausing for breath and completing projects before adding to the list. The committee past and present do work hard to keep a little bit of heaven. Ditch causing concern near Sheffield railway line • By Georgia O’Connor-Harding CALLS FOR a chain fence to be constructed alongside the railway line in Sheffield to stop motorists reversing into a ditch appears to be getting no traction. There is a concern motorists could back into a trench located between a car park and railway line running through Sheffield. The issue was raised at the Sheffield-Waddington Community Committee in April where it was suggested a chain fence be placed near the car park. Secretary Melissa Jebson said the committee had followed up the issue with Sheffield-based KiwiRail train driver Philip Newbigging. But Mr Newbigging told SelwynTimes while he explained to the committee why the ditch was there, he only drives the trains and the issue needed to be followed up with KiwiRail’s engineering and infrastructure team. The matter was also referred to the Malvern Community Board. Deputy chairman Kerry Pauling said it was unlikely a Tickets on sale NOW! DANGER: A trench located between a car park and railway line has raised concerns a vehicle could become stuck in it. PHOTO: RICHARD HARDING chain fence would be put in place and KiwiRail were reluctant to do anything. “From a car park point of view they shouldn’t be that close to the railway line anyway,” he said. A KiwiRail spokeswoman confirmed the trench was installed to provide drainage but the land beside the railway line is leased to the district council and any decision to install a fence would need to be made by them. The district council’s property and services co-ordinator Rob Allen said it will be liaising with KiwiRail to look at the line and identify if there are any safety issues. Saturday and Sunday Breakfast from 8am Great new lunch menu Function Room available for your school sports team fundraiser private dinners Open 7 days Coffee/Lunch/Dinner Open 10am Mon-Fri West Melton Village, Weedons Ross Road Ph 03 421 6481 Courtesy Van available